It’s freezing here in Connecticut. Not that that’s any surprise for January. But the weather has been so crazy for the past year or so that I kind of got used to things being warm in November and December with just an occasional cold or snowflaky day.

But, today is more like the Connecticut winter days I remember. 20 degrees and blowy.

Time for hot, filling food.

Like chili.

I made this version with turkey, which makes it milder than traditional beef chili con carne.

Turkey Chili

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 large onion, chopped

2 large cloves garlic, chopped

1 serrano (or other hot) pepper, deseeded and chopped

16-20 ounces ground turkey

28 ounce can tomatoes, coarsely chopped, undrained

1/4 cup tomato paste

1/2 cup water or vegetable stock

1 tablespoon chili powder

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

15-19 ounce can kidney beans, drained

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and serrano pepper and cook briefly. Add the turkey and cook, stirring to break up the pieces, for 3-5 minutes, until the meat has turned color. Add the tomatoes with their juices, tomato paste, water, chili powder, cumin, oregano and salt and pepper to taste. Cover the pan and simmer for 1-1/2 hours. Stir in the beans. Cook uncovered for 30 minutes. Makes 4 servings